Bittersweet::George Wealsey Oneshot for ImaginationLove
by RarelyPoetic
Summary: A oneshot request for a Quizilla user since the site is acting up. First of a few requests that I'll post on here, since I really hate to go back on my word. The OC belongs solely to ImagintationLove.


Avalon sat cross-legged in the arm chair, staring intently into the fireplace as though it might suddenly start giving her some answers. She wasn't sure what time it was, but the fact that the Common Room was empty suggested that it was pretty late. Not that the time actually mattered – even if she'd been able to sleep she wouldn't. Tonight was the last of a seven year streak. The end of an era.

The girl shivered, despite the heat from the hearth, and reached out for the nearest blanket to wrap around herself. She should be out with them, really, rather than sat here waiting for them to return. That was what she usually did. Avalon and the Weasley twins – partners in crime. But, somehow, she hadn't been able to bring herself to join in on this one. It just made the whole thing feel more definite.

This year was always going to be bittersweet for her. On the one hand, she would be stepping out into the big wide world as a fully qualified, of-age witch. But on the other, she could only use her fingers to count everything that she would be leaving behind. The six and a half years that she'd spent at Hogwarts were the happiest of her life, and the thought of them being over stung.

And now Umbridge had stolen from her the last few months with her best friends, and she was going to see out her final school days alone. Well, alone was a bit of an exaggeration – she had other friends, of course. But none like the Weasley twins. Nobody like George.

_Waving to her parents, she stepped onto the train, excitement and apprehension immediately replacing the sadness she felt at leaving home. She walked along the corridor, not heading in any particular direction, peeking into each compartment to see if she could spot anyone that looked friendly enough for her to join._

_A door slammed behind her, and before she had the chance to turn and look, she found herself knocked to the floor and tangled in a ball of limbs and red hair. Blushing furiously, she got to her feet and tried to tidy her long, dark and now pretty knotted hair._

"_Oh, I'm so sorry – are you two okay?" Avalon asked the two boys – twins – who were still on the floor and now wrestling each other._

"_Wait – what?" One of them asked, having suddenly forgotten about the quarrel with his brother. "Why are you apologising to us?"_

"_Yeah – we knocked you over. We're sorry." The other one added defiantly. "Aren't we, Fred?"_

"_Deeply, deeply sorry." Fred said with an overly solemn expression that made her giggle. "How rude – here we are giving you our most heartfelt apologies, and you just laugh in our faces."_

"_Actually, I think that she was more likely laughing __**at**__ your face than __**to**__ it. And quite frankly, brother, I can't blame her." The nameless twin quipped, making her laugh even harder as the pair resumed their brawl._

"_Fred! George!" A male voice called from further down the train, and the pair instantly got to their feet wearing matching looks of amusement as an older red-head, possibly another brother, marched towards them. The closer he got, the more Avalon had to hold back her laughter as she noticed the strange green hue to his lips and teeth. "This isn't funny. Mum's told you about practising your magic on food. As soon as we get to Hogwarts I going straight to the owlery and…"_

"_Hold on a minute, Perce, lets not be too hasty." Fred said, throwing a glance at his twin. "How do you even know that it was us who did whatever you think we did?"_

"_Yeah – we're on a train full of magical students. It could've been anyone." George continued. "I've always thought that that trolley lady looked shifty. Maybe she's been selling faulty goods."_

"_And green's more of a Slytherin colour, don't you think? I'd have gone with pink, personally." Fred finished, grinning. "Much more your shade. Anyway – where's your proof?"_

"_Proof?" The older boy spat, his face almost purple with anger. "I don't need proof – of course it was you two. It's always you two."_

"_Um… Actually…" Avalon interrupted, her voice quiet but still enough to grab everyone's attention. "I don't think it was them. They've both been with me since I got on the train. We were looking for an empty compartment."_

"_Yeah – exactly!" Fred said, not bothering to hide his surprise._

"_What she said!" George added, pointing at her with a cheeky wink. The trio watched as the boy stalked off, but not before throwing her a cold, calculating stare. "Bloody hell, that was close. We really owe you one…"_

"_Avalon. Avalon Alvanaya." She added her name to the pause, smiling brightly at the pair. It wasn't in her nature to lie, but something about them brought out the mischief in her._

"_Avalon. I'm George, and this is Fred." George jerked his thumb at the other boy, before grabbing her arm and starting to drag her down the corridor._

"_Wait – where are we going?" She asked without making any attempt to pull away._

"_To find a compartment, obviously." Fred said, glancing over his shoulder with a sly smile. "Who knows when we might need another alibi?"_

She heard the portrait door swung open behind her, the room filling with the warmth that only Fred and George could bring. Wiping a few stray tears, Avalon put on her most convincing smile and turned to face the pair.

"All set?" She asked, her voice not quite sounding as enthusiastic as she would have liked.

"Pretty much." George shrugged, and collapsed onto the couch beside her. He closed his eyes, letting his head fall back against the plush material.

"It's just the fireworks left to do, but we'll leave them 'til last minute." Fred added, stifling a yawn with the back of his hand as he headed towards the dormitories. "Well mates: I'm knackered. I'll see you in the morning. Night."

"Good night." Avalon smiled, watching him disappear up the stairs. She pursed her lips, feeling strangely awkward for a moment, before breaking the silence. "So…"

"So." George sighed, looking at her out of the corner of his eyes. "I guess that's it then."

"I guess so." She agreed, not bothering to hide the sadness in her dark eyes. "I don't think I'm ready to go to bed yet."

"Me neither." George sat up a little and stretched out his back. "Fancy going for a wander? For old times' sake?"

"For old times' sake." Avalon let him pull her to her feet, feeling a touch of regret when his hand slipped away from hers. "Lead on, Mr Weasley."

"As you wish, Miss Alvanaya." He winked, taking her arm and leading her out into the cool, deserted corridors for what must have been the thousandth time.

"_Bloody hell, Avalon, you scrub up well." Fred laughed, earning himself a sharp slap on the arm from a very beautiful looking Angelina Johnson. "I mean, you look nice."_

"_Thanks Fred. You don't look too bad yourself." Avalon giggled, tucking a loose curl behind her ear. "Where's George?"_

"_Right behind you." Someone whispered creepily into her ear, making her jump about a foot in the air. "Sorry – couldn't resist."_

"_You are such an arse." The girl gasped, her heart pounding both from the fright and from the excitement of attending the Ball as George's 'date'. Sure, they were only going as friends, but it still meant a lot too her, even if it didn't to him. "Thirty seconds, and I already regret agreeing to go with you. That must be some kind of record."_

"_Oh, come on, you love me really. I keep you on your toes." He grinned, and she rolled her eyes but didn't disagree. He took her arm and led her out of the Common Room, following Fred and Angelina, leaning in closer to mutter. "You do look beautiful, though."_

They walked in a comfortable silence, their footsteps echoing through the deserted school. Avalon folded her arms tightly, biting her lip in uneasy contemplation. She'd long lost count of the times that they had walked, ran and fled through these corridors together, and the thought of this being the last time was all but incomprehensible.

"Hey Avalon – do you remember that time in second year when we accidentally turned Filch's cat purple?" George asked, nudging her gently with his elbow as the rounded a corner.

"And we stumbled into that secret passageway and got lost?" She answered with a small smile. "We were stuck in there for three hours – not exactly easy for me to forget. How about the time when Fred accidently set fire to the desk in Transfiguration and burnt off half his eyebrow?"

"Bloody hell, I'd forgotten about that. Must've been the only time that people could tell us apart." He laughed, running a hand through his hair, suddenly coming to a stop in front of a large tapestry. "I knew it was around here somewhere."

"What was?" Avalon asked, curiosity overpowering her nostalgia for a moment, until George revealed a familiar door. "Is this-?"

"The passageway that we nearly died in? Yeah." He grinned, holding the door open for her to walk in. It was just as she remembered only this time, thankfully, lit with at least a dozen torches. "I found it again a couple of weeks ago. Thought you might like to see it."

"Wow." She said, pressing her back up against the cold, stone wall. A lump began to rise in her throat, and hot tears were forming quicker than she could blink them away. "I'm really going to miss you."

"Me too." He sighed, his eyes shining with concern as he turned to face her. "Oh hell, Avalon – don't' cry. You'll only set me off and then we'll really be in a mess. You know if Fred were here he'd tell us both to man up."

"I know." She half laughed, half sobbed, letting him pull her into a hug. "I wish you didn't have to leave me behind."

"I know. But it's only for a couple of months. Then, I swear, you won't get rid of me. Of us, I mean." George murmured into her hair, before gently pushing her away. "Okay, right, the hell with it. Avalon, there's something I need you to know. I was going to tell you at the ball but I bottled it, but I'm leaving tomorrow and if you don't want to see me again then that's-"

"Whoa, George, breathe." The girl giggled, her eyes narrowed at his sudden change of mood. "Try again, but a bit slower this time, okay?"

"Okay." He took a deep breath, lowering his head a little so that he could look into her eyes. "Okay. Do you want to know why I brought us here? Because this is the place that… this was where I first fell in love with you. And I get it if you don't feel the same way, but I couldn't… I couldn't just leave without letting you know how beautiful you are and how happy you make me. So, there. I love you. Please say something before I faint or something."

Avalon froze for a moment, her mind taking a second to process what she had just heard. There was so much that she wanted to say in return, but her clumsy tongue couldn't form the words that her heart needed to release. So, instead, she kissed him. With as much love and passion as a person could possibly convey in a kiss.


End file.
